Dear Season Ticket Holders and Guests:

Thank you so much for taking the time to attend the Town Hall Meeting this afternoon.  It is very much appreciated.  My previously arranged vacation/business trip to British Columbia months ago was very difficult to rebook.  Believe me, I tried several different angles unsuccessfully and wish I were here to meet you in person.

Let me start by letting you know that joining the Wings staff means a lot to me.  It is an honor and I have the utmost respect for our organization, fans and tradition.  Mike French introduced me to Russ and Chris in the early Wings years when Mike played in ’87 and then became the GM in ’88.  I was also good friends with his brother Paul who played ’87-’89.  I traveled to see the wings play, kept in touch with Mike, and became a huge Wings fan, just like you. I love the Wings and have for 24 years.  To be GM of the Wings’ 25^th Anniversary Season is special.

In 1992 Russ and Chris, encouraged by Mike, offered me the GM position with the Buffalo Bandits.  Our rivalry with the Wings was instant and we defeated the Wings in the championship games in both ’92 and ’93.  Then, in 1994 the Wings shut the door on our quest for three in a row with a 26-15 win and their third title.  The Wings won again in 1995 and the Bandits returned the favor by stopping their three-peat in 1996.

The crazy relationship peaked again in 2001 when I was VP/GM of the Toronto Rock.  After winning championships in 1998 and 2000, the Wings knocked us out in 2001.  So here I am, GM of a team I was such a huge fan of 24 years ago and spent the last 18 years battling.  Who would have thought?

I fully understand the key to winning lacrosse championships is total collaboration.  This is not a one-man show by any means.  In fact, it is anything but.  Building a complimentary lacrosse operations staff is paramount for success.  With the support of Russ, Chris and Mike, we have hired three great new coaches.  Each adds specific strengths for our organization, a US player talent scout, a Director of Player Development, and talent and advanced game scouts in eastern and western Canada.  We are still looking to fill our Video Coach and Goaltender Coach positions.

We are building systems that are very complex and detailed allowing us to find new players who work terribly hard while continuing to engage the existing players who have worked terribly hard to win championships.

Our player procurement strategy is to find players who understand how special it is to play for the Wings in the NLL and strengthen all positions.  We are focusing on US talent and currently have some of the best US talent in the game of lacrosse.  We are focusing on player leadership and look forward to watching our locker room develop.  Look at our roster with the US players who just won the World Field Championship in Manchester England! We have a lot of character in this club.

As you can tell, we are excited about the lacrosse operations staff and pleased with our core group of players.  We will continue to work collectively to add hard working players to our roster.  Our goal is to make the playoffs and be back on top in the NLL.

Your continued support through the valleys helps us get to the peaks and is much appreciated.  We know that you are great ambassadors for the Wings and we thank you.  Sharing the game with friends and family and providing feedback on the fan experience will make us a better organization.

Collectively we will make good things happen as we head to this new season, the 25^th anniversary of the best NLL franchise.  Let’s get the nasty mood back into our barn and make it the toughest place to play a professional lacrosse game!

Sincerely,

General Manager, Johnny Mouradian